Redheads Ride for Free
by pkitten21
Summary: A ComicCon adventure of fanfic proportions...A five chap. series of vignettes inspired by ComicCon 2010's misadventures...a little tongue-in-cheek...a little bit of fun. M for foul language and one smutty lemon.
1. Wednesday

**This is a a short story (4 chaps.) made up of a series of vignettes based off of my misadventures at Comic Con 2010 with TFX, Anntastic23, MrsBing03, Kimpy0464 (and her sweet spawn). I also finally had the pleasure of meeting my wonderful beta mcc101180 - she's one of the few people that understands the crazy that is my life (she wears more hats than I do). We had a great time and met a lot of lovely fic ladies-I'm going to miss you this year :(  
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**Twilight and its characters belong to Stephenie Meyer.  
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**~Wednesday~**

"I can't believe we're finally here!"

"I know. This is just unreal, you guys!" Bella said in awe while she and her small group of friends waited for the airport shuttle to unload their bags in front of their hotel.

Rose tipped the shuttle driver then grabbed the handle of her suitcase. "Let's check-in, shall we?"

The four women smiled at each other and laughed girlishly in their excitement. "Alice, this place is amazing," Angela said as they climbed the steps into the lobby of 500 West Hotel.

"I know, right? It was the best deal I could find downtown. I know it's technically a hostel, but look at it—this is so awesome! It looks just like the pictures on the website." Alice walked confidently to the counter and checked them in while the other women examined their surroundings.

Upon closer scrutiny, Bella thought the interior walls weren't exactly crack or scuff-free, but it still looked fairly nice. Off to one side there was a small room with a desk containing two computers and a couple of printers, another table with a few chairs and three clocks lining the wall, giving the local time—San Diego, and the correlating times for New York and London as well.

"Okay, here are your keys, Alice said, handing each of them a small, black electronic key. "This will open the door to our rooms as well as the bathrooms. We're in rooms five-twelve and five-fourteen."

With keys in hand and excitement bubbling within, they all followed Alice to the elevators. Bella looked at the elevator doors, smiling brightly with anticipation, and giddy for the adventure she and her friends had been planning for the past year. They had finally arrived, here in San Diego, for four glorious days at the Mecca of geeks—ComicCon. Panels of some of Hollywood's biggest stars and sneak-peeks of upcoming films and TV shows awaited them. None of them worked in the industry; they just shared a mutual and deep love of all things geek.

The ding of the elevator coming to a stop in the lobby startled Bella and brought her attention back to the light green doors that opened in front of her. A collective gasp came from the friends as the doors slid open, revealing the dingy interior of the elevator. It was small and cramped-looking, with dark gray or perhaps brown carpeting. It was so heavily stained Bella wasn't exactly sure what color it had originally been. They looked at each other in slight trepidation, filing one by one into the claustrophobic space and turning around to face the doors.

They all looked to Rose since she was the closest to the control panel. She reached out with one finger to push the well-worn button next to the number they all hoped indicated the fifth floor. She pushed it once, but the light didn't come on so she pushed it a couple more times—all to no avail. The doors eventually closed and with the sound of metal grinding against metal, they began their ascent toward their floor.

No one said a word as they rose; no one looked at each other either. They stared straight ahead—hoping the thumps and clanks they heard wouldn't send them plummeting down the elevator shaft—until the elevator jerked to a stop and the doors opened.

They quickly disembarked, moving as if their lives depended upon it, then collectively turned and heaved sighs of relief as the elevator doors shut. The group stared at Alice, who glanced around sheepishly, unable to look anyone in the eye.

"So…" Alice said finally, directing her attention to the placards on the wall "…I think our rooms are this way." She took the lead, and they followed, their eyes boring into the back of her head as they made their way down the maze of hallways. If the elevators were any indication of what else they could expect, things were not looking good.

The tiled floor of the elevator lobby gave way to a carpeted passageway. Bella thought it looked like something out of _Ghostbusters_, as if Slimer would come squishing through one of the walls at any moment. She could picture Dr. Venkman and Ray running down the hall in their coveralls, proton packs strapped to their backs. Only, that hotel was nicer. The carpet wasn't striped in varying shades of green and dirty, stained with years of foot traffic and… She pulled herself out of her thoughts as they passed the bathrooms long enough to scan the tiled area—she should have brought a pair of flip-flops—and wrinkle her nose in disgust at the odor of stale cigarette smoke wafting through an open doorway. The lingering stench was clearly the reason California had pioneered the current trend in anti-smoking laws.

The rooms were at the end of the hall, and upon reaching them, the girls paired off to inspect their accommodations. Bella and Angela entered their room without hesitation. The two women considered themselves a bit more low maintenance than their counterparts in the next room and had very little trepidation about getting settled for the evening, even if the lodgings were a little less comfortable than they had expected. Alice and Rose on the other hand were a different story.

"Alice, you cannot possibly expect me to—" Bella heard Rose start to screech from next door. She surveyed the small room and looked at Angela to gauge her reaction, who appeared, although not wholly thrilled, rather accepting of their circumstance.

"It's not that bad. I mean really, how much time are we going to spend here, right?" Angela pointed out.

"Right. It's a place to sleep. We're going to be so busy at the convention we'll hardly be here anyway."

"Exactly." Angela nodded and set her suitcase to the side so she could inspect the small armoire in the corner of the room.

While the two girls worked on getting themselves settled, Rose and Alice argued next door.

"I'm not staying here, Alice."

"Where would we go? The W? The Hilton? Those places have been booked for months, Rose, and they cost three times as much." Alice sighed, tired from their long trip and in no mood to deal with Rose's snobbery. "We're not going to spend that much time here anyway. It may look worn and well used—"

"Well used? Look at that!" Rose pointed. "It looks like someone melted the desktop with their flat iron!"

"It's a fucking hostel, Rose!" Alice held up her finger to emphasize her point and ignored Rose's interjection. "It's clean and it's a place to put our stuff. We're hardly even going to be here, so deal."

Rose snarled in response as she set her suitcase next to the window. Alice had made her point, but that didn't mean that she had to be happy about it. Besides, they were supposed to be having the time of their lives. She needed to try and not let her sensibilities ruin the vacation for not only herself, but her friends as well. "All-right, I'll deal. Now let's get unpacked. I'm starving."

Fifteen minutes later, Rose had her costumes unpacked and her red wig settled on the desk in the corner, ready to put on in the morning. Alice had already slipped out to the restroom, so she grabbed her purse and locked the door behind her. Everyone was waiting for her in the hall. Hopefully they hadn't been waiting for too long, since the smell of cigarettes and reefer had permeated the hallway, and all of them were hungry enough without adding a case of the munchies from a contact buzz.

They quietly, and reluctantly, made their way back down to the dilapidated elevators at the end of the hall. It was like they had a silent agreement to wait until they'd made it outside before talking again. Rose chalked that up to hunger, being travel weary, and an unwillingness to acknowledge their housing situation.

The sun had set while they were inside, and even though the temperature had cooled to a much more comfortable level, there was still a hint of humidity in the air. "So, which way do you guys want to go?" Rose asked, looking up and down the streets.

"Let's go this way. It looks like there might be some restaurants up there." Angela pointed to their left. "There doesn't seem to be anything promising down toward the bay."

They walked north for a couple of blocks, finding a few of the usual fast food joints and a café that was attached to the bus station. "Let's go to the café; they've got pizza and sandwiches," Alice suggested.

Rose was game, a simple slice or two of pepperoni sounded really good to her grumbling belly. Of course by the time she had placed her order at the counter, there wasn't any plain pepperoni left so she had to wait until the next one came out of the oven—a double edged sword. She was bummed that she had to wait since she was so hungry, but at least her piece would be fresh.

She stood at the counter and waited while everyone else found a place to sit at the nearby tables. She turned her back to the counter while she waited and thought about how bad-ass she was going to look in her costume tomorrow. Oblivious to the patron that now stood at the counter waiting next to her, she turned when she heard the girl at the counter slip a couple of trays onto the counter behind her.

Both trays had a Diet Coke and a basket with some chips and a pickle, so she grabbed the pickle off the nearest plate and took a bite. The next thing she knew the lady behind the counter was screeching at her.

"Hey, you can't do that! That's not your pickle, that's _his_ pickle!" The irate employee pointed to the large man standing next to her.

Rose's eyes widened at the sight of the tall, muscular man standing next to her. She still hadn't noticed that anyone had been standing next to her until the lady pointed him out. He was at least six inches taller than her five foot, nine inch frame and he had dark curly hair and brown eyes that were twinkling with laughter. He was laughing at her. That's when it really dawned on her—she'd just taken a bite out of this man's pickle.

Embarrassment flooded her cheeks and caused her to sputter. "Oh my God!" she practically threw the pickle back down on the tray in her mortification. "I'm so sorry. I thought it was mine, since I was still waiting for my food."

"You might as well keep it now since you took a bite out of it." The employee held the tray out to her so she could take the pickle back. As soon as the offending morsel was back in her fingers, the lady snatched the tray away, threw out the chips, and started refilling the tray.

All she could do was stand there with the pickle pinched between her fingers. She didn't know what to do with it. Should she eat it? Just hold it? Offer it to the guy? She snuck a peek at him out of the corner of her eye; he stood there leaning against the wall with his muscled arms crossed against his chest. He was watching her with a huge smile on his face.

He was still laughing at her.

Rose definitely wasn't going to offer him the rest of the pickle, but she still didn't know what to do with it. She felt too guilty to eat it.

Rose looked back at the counter at the same time she saw a movement out of the corner of her eye. The man had stood up from the wall and leaned in close to her, whispering in her ear and causing her to shiver. "It's not as big a deal as she's making it out to be. Don't worry about it." She felt his warm breath across the skin on her neck. Then he leaned in just a little closer and the tone of his voice dipped slightly lower. "Besides, it's not every day I get the honor of a woman as beautiful as you taking a bite out of my…pickle."

As quickly as he'd leaned in, he was gone. She shot him another wide eyed look—this time in reaction to his words—and saw him leaning back up against the wall with that damn smile spread across his face.

Finally, the lady set a tray on the counter with her pizza on it. She shot Rose a dirty look and shook her head, as she picked it up. She couldn't get away from the counter fast enough. Thankfully the girls had saved her a seat. She didn't bother to look at her friends as she sat down. She could already hear their snickers as they tried to hold back their laughter. Bella broke first with a loud guffaw, followed by the others.

"Fuck you!" she snapped at them. "I'm embarrassed enough as it is without you all cackling at me too."

It was Bella who spoke up first, only after her laughter was somewhat under control. "I'm so sorry, Rose..." Her sincerity was in serious doubt with her continued giggles. "…but you stole his pick…his pickle!"

She took a large bite of her pizza, stared at the offending pickle—it was definitely the pickles fault—while she chewed, and tried to ignore her friends. She was never going to live this down. By the time she was done and the girls had finally calmed down, the pickle was still on her plate. She didn't want to eat it, but she felt too guilty not to, so she picked it up and took a big bite. The pickle guy looked at her as she started to chew and winked at her before picking up his tray from his table and leaving the small café.

As they got up to leave, Alice asked her what the guy had said to her when he'd leaned in. He cheeks blossomed in another round of fierce blushes as she remembered his words. She didn't want to tell them, but she knew it was better to get it out and over with now rather than have them hound her all the way back to the hotel. Of course her confession brought on another round of laughter as they walked down the street.

"It's too bad you stole his pickle, Rose," Angela said. "He was kind of cute."

"Yeah, it's too bad you touched the forbidden pickle so soon. You know a girl should at least wait for the first date." Bella laughed again. "Now he probably thinks you're easy!"

"She is easy!" Alice half-yelled.

"I hate you all." Rose shook her head at her friends. She smiled then, knowing for sure she was definitely never going to live this down.


	2. Thursday

**Another short chapter - the last two are longer and have a little more...action. I promise ;) Next update on Monday, July 18th.  
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**~Thursday~**

Bella looked at her watch for the fifth time in the last half hour. Seven-fifteen. She grimaced and looked at the fuckery around her. Out of the four girls, she and Angela were the only two ready to go. If Alice and Rose didn't finish up their primping, she was hoping to suggest that she and Ange should take-off and the other two could meet them in line. As it was, she was sure they were going to miss their chance to get into the opening panel. She looked at her watch again and huffed—only two minutes had passed.

"God, Bella, relax. We'll get there in time. The _Megamind_ panel doesn't start until ten," Rose said, as Alice settled a long red wig over Rose's blond tresses.

"I'm telling you guys, it's going to be a mad house down there. I saw the barricades for the line last night when Angela and I went down to scope things out. The lines are going to be long. I'm anticipating a lot of hurry-up and wait."

"We're almost ready." Alice put her mask in place. "I'm sure you're overreacting. Besides, they plan ahead for this, you know? They've anticipated the number of people wanting to get in; it's not going to be a problem."

"Whatever. I'll bet you dinner tonight that we won't get in right away." Bella pulled her backpack on and held up one of the humungous bags they had all received when they had picked up their badges the night before. "Do you think we'll need these?"

"I'm going to take it just in case." Angela rolled hers up and stuffed it in her own backpack.

"Good idea. We'll meet you guys downstairs," Bella said as she slipped out the door.

Ten minutes later, they were finally on their way. Bella looked at her watch again. Seven-thirty. Their hostel was just a little over a half-mile from the convention center, so the walk was short.

Although Bella and Angela hadn't dressed in costume, they didn't feel out of place next to their friends. If Bella was being honest, she'd have to admit that they both looked pretty damn hot in their costumes. The attention they garnered was worth the proud smile she saw grace her friends' faces. It had been Alice's idea to dress up, and Rose, being such a good sport, had wholeheartedly agreed with the plan.

Each costume had been handmade to perfection, and each day of the convention demanded a new outfit. Thursday was reserved for villains. Rose was Poison Ivy, a la Uma Thurman since she had the body to pull it off, and Alice was a perfect compliment as Catwoman circa Halle Berry as we all had agreed Michelle Pfeiffer's vinyl would have been just too damn hot for sunny Southern Cali at this time of year. Friday was cartoon day. They were going to go as a team and dress a little more comfortably and simply as Susan and Mary Test from the Johnny Test cartoon—gotta love a couple of hot brainiacs in lab coats and librarian glasses. Saturday was going to be their greatest achievement: good versus evil. They were going to fulfill every fanboy's wet dream as Scarlett and the Baroness from _G.I. Joe_. Bella had to admit they were going to look hot and wished she had enough guts to dress as Lady Jaye.

In all actuality it didn't matter. Saturday was the _Harry Potter_ panel and she had come prepared to dress up, as much as she dared, in her favorite house colors and carry her wand. Angela had chosen to stick with Bella for at least the first day so that she wouldn't feel like the odd man out in their little group, but she had already planned on going all out on Friday in full _Star Wars_ regalia.

Rose had never felt more confident as she walked down toward the bay. She looked damn hot and she knew it. Truly a geek to the core, she was in her element. Surrounded by people with like-minds, she had nothing to fear. She could truly be herself in this environment, and she wanted to flaunt it for the first time in her life.

The crowd steadily grew as they got closer to the convention center, and for the first time, she started to worry that Bella had been correct in her estimation that they should have arrived much earlier. As she looked around the crowd, she could see people from every walk of life. Some were dressed up in full costume, but most were dressed as Bella and Angela—comfortable clothes and kick-ass t-shirts proclaiming their fandom affiliations. Those in costume ranged in varying styles of simplicity to more intricate works of art.

Most shocking was the degree of flesh on display. She and Alice had wanted to look sexy but never would have felt comfortable parading around as exposed as some of the other women—they might as well have just been nude. There were women dressed in lingerie, and she'd passed a woman that looked to have been wearing just a thong and a strip of fabric twisted into some sort of halter top that barely covered her nipples—for the life of her she couldn't figure who she was supposed to be. She'd counted at least four other girls, and one guy, dressed as Poison Ivy. So far she thought she had the best costume—although the dude had one hell of a pair of tits that had been artfully _covered_ with ivy leaves.

The crowd in front of the convention center was almost impassable, so the girls formed a single file line and held hands as they weaved their way through the throng of people. Unfortunately as they approached the doors for Hall H, Rose realized Alice was going to have to pay up for Bella's dinner that night. The line was never-ending. Literally. There was no way they were going to make it inside right away.

"So, Alice, what are you going to buy Bella for dinner tonight?"

~CC~

The rest of the day fell into place as planned, and they didn't leave until well after dark. Tired and starving, they slowly made their way back to the hostel. The crowd had only diminished slightly since the morning and flowed down the street narrowly avoiding a group of pedi-cab drivers vying for the attention of the attendees as they walked by.

"Redheads ride for free!" a deep voice yelled as they passed.

"No thanks, I'm good." Rose turned and quickly answered as she walked backwards. She almost stumbled when she recognized the guy standing next to a pedi-cab behind her. Mr. Forbidden Pickle.

"'Cause I'm a _big_ fan…" He smiled flirtatiously and held his hands up in the air.

"Good to know." Rose turned back around, hoping her wig would keep him from remembering his stolen pickle. She ignored him as he continued to yell after them. Of course, her luck had run out because as soon as she turned around, she knew her friends had recognized him.

"What's wrong, Rose? Don't you want another bite of his pickle?" Alice snickered.

"Not funny, Alice."

"Of course it is."Alice tried to keep a straight face but failed miserably, sending Angela and Bella into fits of laughter. With many jokes at Rose's expense, they quickly made it back to the hostel to change before dinner.

Bella had decided she wanted to go to Little Italy to claim her dinner from Alice, but none of them knew where it was. Angela looked it up on the phone while they walked in the general direction in which they thought it was located.

"Red?" Rose heard someone yell in their direction. She wasn't sure who he was talking to—it couldn't possibly be her since she had taken off her wig from earlier in the day and had pulled her blond hair up into a loose bun. She ignored whomever it was and kept walking.

"It is you, Red. Or should I call you Pickle Girl?" a familiar voice said from right beside her.

She was sure her eyes reflected her sudden panic. Not only had her Forbidden Pickle pulled up right next to her on the street, but he had recognized her with and without her wig. The fact that her friends were now laughing at her, again, completed her mortification. She turned to confront the hot pedi-cab driver. "Are you stalking me?"

"Maybe." He grinned. "Of course I could ask you the same thing. Maybe you just want another taste of my pickle."

"In your dreams." Rose stalked up the street, trying to get away from her friends and the beautiful brown-eyed pickle man.

"Stop—wait! I'm sorry. I was just joking." He jogged up beside her and held up his hands in surrender. "I was joking."

"No more pickle jokes?" She looked at him out of the corner of her eye.

"No more pickle jokes," he agreed.

She stopped and looked back, her traitorous friends hanging on every word as they trailed closely behind.

"Seriously, can I give you ladies a ride somewhere?"

Rose turned back to face him. He was looking at her with an honest smile. "We don't need a ride, but you can give us directions."

"Sure thing, Red."


	3. Friday: Part One

**So I lied. It's going to be 5 chaps instead of 4. My traveling schedule is interfering with my writing, so to get a chapter out as promised today I'm splitting the day in half. Part two will post tomorrow evening with the last chap to post on Wed.**

**Thanks to my beta Mel, without whom I'd never be able to post!**

**~Friday~**

**~Part One~**

While Rose and Alice donned their wigs, Angela plaited her long hair into an intricate braid worthy of Princess Leia and thought about the previous evening. Emmett, the hunk formerly known as the Forbidden Pickle, had given them perfect directions that had taken them into the heart of Little Italy where Bella had picked a cute little bistro for Alice to make good on her bet. After a quick dinner, in which they'd all gorged themselves on wine, bread, and the most delicious pasta, they were able to find their own way back to the hostel where they'd promptly fallen into bed exhausted and in desperate need of sleep so they could get up at the ass crack of dawn to get into their costumes for the day.

Looking at Bella still fast asleep, she was desperately wishing she would have chickened out of wearing her costume. Bella, of course, woke just in time to tie her hair into a loose bun and slip into a _Dr. Who_ t-shirt and a pair of jeans. Simplicity was key, Angela decided. Next year, she was going to have Bella pack for her. Right now, she was jealous of those few extra minutes of sleep Bella snagged—they would have been worth it that evening when they camped out with the rest of the _Harry Potter_ fans that were going to be in line for Hall H.

Despite learning from their mistakes the morning before, Angela and Bella still found themselves in a similar situation as they had the previous day. There were so many panels to choose from, that while Rose and Alice decided to camp out in Ballroom 20 for the day, she and Bella hoped they could squeeze in panels from Hall H first thing in the morning and still make the afternoon panels in Ballroom 20 with their friends. They couldn't have been more wrong.

While Rose and Alice drooled over Jonathan Jackson from _Fringe_ and the hot nerds from _The Big Bang Theory,_ they were standing in line for over three hours hoping they might at least make it into the _Bones_ panel in time to ogle the aged, but still hot, Angel.

"So are you going to go all the way?"

"I don't know." Angela fingered the white polyester of her robes. "This is kind of my safety net, you know? I'm not sure if I have the confidence like some of these other yahoos to let it all hang out as Slave Leia."

"Trust me, Ange, you're more fit to wear that costume than most of the other women I've seen wearing it around here. You definitely look better wearing it than that dude we saw yesterday." Bella shuddered.

"He was definitely a confidence booster. I don't know what appalled me more—his beer belly, his body hair or the fact that he was able to fill out the cups of the bikini top with his moobs."

Bella didn't know whether to laugh or throw-up at the mental image assaulting her memory. "I've never seen a man with that much back hair. He could have dressed as Chewbacca and not even needed a costume."

"I know, right?" Angela walked forward as the line finally started to move. "Like I said, I don't know. I'm thinking I might take it off when we go to the Exhibit Hall later after we meet back up with the girls."

As their continued bad luck would have it, they just missed the cut-off and were stuck in line with nowhere to go. Fortunately for them, they had connections with the most awesome best friends anyone could ask for—friends that covertly handed off their bathroom passes so that they could catch at least one of the panels that they all had been looking forward to that day.

A little hungry and more than a little exhausted, they settled themselves in the back of the conference room. There was no way they were going to find any seats up close, or even together so they contented themselves with seats near the back wall where Angela could plug in her phone and replenish some of the charge she'd used up trying to text with Alice and Rose.

"Where are we supposed to meet them again?" Bella whispered.

"The restrooms around the corner. The ones near the escalators."

"Perfect. I've really got to go, but there is no way I'm leaving this room until the panel is over."

"Exactly. It'll give me the perfect chance to take my robes off and stow them in my backpack before we go down to the Exhibit Hall." Angela plugged the cord into her phone.

"So you're gonna do it?" Bella smiled.

"Yeah." Angela took a deep breath, as if it would fortify her resolve. "Yeah, I'm gonna do it."

~CC~

"This stuff is so awesome!" Bella motioned to the large displays as they all entered the Exhibit Hall. "Oh my God! Take my picture with Bumble Bee."

Bella handed her camera off to Alice and scurried happily over to stand in front of the life-size display of her favorite Transformer.

When they had gotten their fill of the _Transformer _and _Harry Potter_ displays at the entrance, they decided to make a circuit around the outside edge of the hall. There were so many booths to look at, and so many people in costume. It was almost overwhelming for Angela to be in such a big crowd of people.

"What the fuck, Bella?" She rubbed the sting out of the arm Bella had just slapped.

"Ange, look!" Bella pointed to a booth just ahead of them. "Walking sex… right over there."

"Who am I supposed to be looking at?"

"You did not just say that!" Bella looked at her with surprise. "Three words, woman—Sean Patrick Flanery."

"What? Where?" She searched the nearby booths and crowd.

"Over there." Bella pointed again.

"Oooh, I see him! Holy, Hell...Bella, do you remember that quick little peek of his ass at the beginning of the second _Saints_ movie?"

"How could I forget? That man has a beautiful ass." Bella grabbed her hand and pulled her closer to the booth. "He's signing autographs. We have to get one."

"Too bad we don't have a screen cap of his ass that he could sign."

"I know, right?"

They slowly made their way forward through the line. When it was their turn, their excitement bubbled under the surface of their skin, threatening to explode as they stood less than twelve inches from _Mr._ Flanery, but they stoically held themselves in check as they made small talk with the actor while he laid his John Hancock down on their photos. By the time they said their thank yous and waved a blushing goodbye, they finally noticed they had lost sight of both Alice and Rosalie.

"Where do you think they are?" Bella asked her.

"I don't know, but they couldn't have gotten far. Let's go stand by the wall and I'll try to text them."

"Perfect." Bella beamed. "I can ogle Sean while you call. I don't think I could ever get enough of looking at that luscious man."

"At least we'll have a nice view while we wait. I'm going to plug my phone in for a few minutes and see if I can get a quick charge, too."

A few short minutes later, Angela had a reply from Alice. "Let's go. They're just around the corner at a _Star Wars_ display."

"Oh, well that narrows it down. How many _Star Wars_ displays are in this place?" Bella grimaced.

"Don't worry, we'll find them. I think they're just over there." She pointed to the crowd standing in front of small dais covered with people in various _Star Wars_ costumes.

It looked as if it was some kind of booth for a costume shop, and they were having a show of sorts, displaying all of their available costumes. If she hadn't already sworn off wearing one the next year, she'd be tempted to shell out the cash for one of those female bounty hunter costumes—they covered a little more than the Slave Leia itsy-bitsy, metal-encrusted bikini she was wearing and looked a hell of a lot more comfortable.

Off to her left, there was a commotion as a life-size replica of R2-D2 sped through the aisle. It was pretty cool, but she had seen it before as it had been making the rounds all day. Unfortunately, the crowd around her was mesmerized by it and surged forward to capture as many snapshots as their cameras would allow, and a couple of dip-shits knocked into her on their way by, causing her to lose her balance and fall flat on her ass.

As she tried to get back to her feet, she noticed two things: one—none of her friends were around, and two—there was a white armored hand held out in front of her. She took it, grateful for the help, and as she was pulled to her feet, she followed the white armor all the way up to the helmet-clad head of a slightly short Stormtrooper.

"Aren't you a little short to be a Stormtrooper?" she asked with a laugh.

"What? Oh… the uniform. My name is Ben Cheney. I'm here to rescue you."

"You're who?"

"I'm Ben," he said, removing his helmet. "I'm here to rescue you."

She couldn't help but full out laugh at her situation—there she was standing in the middle of a crowd, scantily dressed, her friends nowhere to be found, with a cute-as-fuck Stormtrooper offering to rescue her.

"Are you all right?" he asked, running a gloved hand through his mop of brown hair.

"I'm fine. Thank you." She smiled at him.

"Your costume is great." His eyes went wide, and he blushed as he complimented her.

"Yours is too." She thanked him. "Where did you get it? It looks so authentic."

"Oh…um...I'm part of the Legion."

"What's the Legion?" He sounded as if she should know what he was talking about, and she felt like an idiot for asking.

"It's a charity group. We donate our time to different organizations like Make-A-Wish or parades and conferences and stuff. I'm actually working right now."

"Oh, shit, I'm sorry! I'm not holding you up or anything, am I?"

"No, No, it's okay." He smiled at her now. "I'm just supposed to wander around right now. You know, be seen and pose for photos and stuff."

She continued to smile at him, not really knowing what to say. He was really cute and so sweet. He kind of made her a little nervous. She reached up to fidget with the neckline of her robe and blushed when she only came in contact with her skin. She had forgotten that she had removed the robe and was only clad in a skimpy bikini top—which made her even more nervous than she had been before.

"So—" he started to say but was interrupted by a loud screech.

"Angela!" Rose screeched. "There you are! We thought we'd lost you."

"Hey, guys." She was thankful for the interruption and yet annoyed that she didn't have any more time alone with her Stormtrooper. She looked over at Rose and found all of her friends were staring at them. "This is…um Ben?"

She looked at him and he nodded in confirmation.

"Are you a Stormtrooper? Can I get a picture?" Alice asked excitedly.

Ben looked at Angela and winked before giving a quick affirmative and moving to put his helmet back on.

"This is so cool." Alice beamed and handed Angela her camera. Rose and Bella quickly followed suit. Ben graciously posed with each of her friends and then gave them a "thumbs up" when they thanked him. Before they walked away, he motioned to Angela and asked if she would like a picture as well.

Before she could answer, Rose grabbed her camera and pushed her toward him. He put his arm around her and drew her in close to his side which made her blush yet again. Just as she thought Rose was going to snap a picture, she moved the camera from in front of her face. The mischievious glint in her eye put Angela on guard—without a doubt whatever Rose was going to do was going to embarrass her.

"I don't suppose that costume comes with a pair of those handcuffs Han and Luke used on Chewbacca in _Star Wars_, did it?" She smiled a little too innocently.

Angela could hear Ben laugh inside his helmet as he pulled a pair of cuffs off of his utility belt.

"Perfect. Put them on her." Rose motioned toward Angela's wrists. "This is going to be epic."

Epically embarrassing, Angela thought, trying to keep her smile in place and not succumb to her instinct to bolt. She wasn't sure what was more embarrassing at the moment—Rose posing her in handcuffs with the highly attractive Ben, or her reaction to the whole situation. Either way she was thankful that Ben's helmet was still on and he most likely couldn't see the look on her face...not clearly anyway.

When Rose was done snapping shots of her, she quickly thanked him and started off after the rest of her friends. She was happy to leave him standing there so that she could escape her own awkwardness, and yet sad that she didn't get any more time with him. Before she got too far away, she turned to sneak a quick peek back at him, finding him standing in the same place. He'd taken his helmet back off and was staring right back at her. She blushed and turned back to her friends, eager to get away. But then she stopped. She was awkward, but he had been too….and he was cute. For once in her life, she decided to take a chance and ran back up to him.

"Do you have to work all night?" she asked, slightly breathless.

"Just a couple of more hours. Why?"

She looked him in the eye, and seeing interest reflected back at her, decided to jump in with both feet. "My friends and I are going to see a band play later tonight at the House of Blues. Would you like to meet me there?"

The skin around his eyes crinkled as he smiled broadly at her. "I'll be there."

"Great." She hesitated for just a second and then ran to catch up with the girls.


	4. Friday: Part Two

**~Friday~**

**~Part Two~  
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"What are you doing, Rose?" Bella watched her from a few paces behind.

"What? Nothing."

"Yes, you are. You're looking at every pedicab that goes by. Looking for someone?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." She stuck her nose in the air and sped ahead of them, just out of talking distance.

"She's got it bad," Alice sang.

"Yes, she does," Bella agreed. "So, what's the plan?"

"Well, we've got a couple of hours to burn, so I thought we could just veg at the hostel until we needed to get ready to go." She thought ahead to the night they had planned. "The show doesn't start until nine, I think. So if we're lucky, we can get a table and eat there. Angela's new boy toy is going to meet us there, but I'm not sure what time."

"What about Rose's pedicab driver? Do you think he's working tonight?"

"I'm sure he is. I imagine that the convention would mean a boost in business for him and the rest of Pedicab Junction. Maybe we'll see him riding around tonight."

Up ahead, Alice saw her friend pause in front of a CVS and then dash inside. "What do you think she's up to now?"

"I have no idea, but I bet it's going to be interesting, Angela piped up from beside them. She hadn't said much of anything on their way back from the convention center. She'd obviously had someone on her mind since their run-in with the cute Stormtrooper in the Exhibit Hall. Alice couldn't fault her; he was too cute in his uniform.

"Let's go see what Rose is up to." Alice led them into the pharmacy and through the aisles until they found her standing in front of the hair dye. She had a different color of red in each hand and was holding them up to compare with the others on the shelf.

"Seriously?" Bella laughed.

Rose looked back at them sheepishly. "Emmett likes 'em red."

"Holy shit, you've got it bad!" Alice couldn't help laughing at her friend—the situation was just too bizarre.

"Stop laughing and help me pick out the right color. I don't want to end up looking like a carrot or one of those magenta-haired old ladies." Alice rather enjoyed Rose's sad attempt to keep a scowl on her face; her best friend indeed had it bad.

The following hours were spent in one of the communal bathrooms near their room dying Rose's blond hair the perfect shade of red. The end result was striking, yet natural. By the time they were ready to leave, Alice could hardly contain her excitement. As much fun as she was having at the convention, she had been looking forward to tonight's show at the House of Blues more. One of her favorite indie bands, Grape, just happened to be in town playing, and this was her first chance to see them live. The venue was perfect. The band was playing on the smaller stage in the dining room. It was going to be intimate, yet full of excitement and energy as she had heard the band always put on a hell of a show.

Surprisingly, the restaurant wasn't that busy, and upon entering, Angela spied her little Stormtrooper right away. The addition of Ben to their party was easy with his quiet demeanor and witty banter. He fit right into their group without any awkwardness.

During dinner, the bar slowly filled to capacity. There was barely any room to walk. The extra bodies had increased the temperature inside by what she thought was at least ten degrees, so they all decided to take their drinks out onto the patio for some relief while they waited for the band to arrive. It turns out that was probably the best decision they could have made. On her way back out to the patio from the replenishing her drink, she came face-to-face with none other than Jasper Whitlock, front man of the band. Well…who she considered the front man anyway. The band, Grape, was an indie funk rock sound from L.A., and all of the members were equally talented where instrumentation and vocals were concerned. In fact, they often switched instruments throughout the show. There wasn't necessarily a lead vocalist or guitarist since they all switched around so much between roles—it was part of their charm...and genius—as far as Alice was concerned.

She smiled and quickly moved off to the side, so he could get by with his load of guitars. He smiled and nodded thanks to her as he swaggered by, looking smooth and sexy as only a Texan could. She stood there for a minute admiring the view as he passed out of sight. He was wearing his trademark cowboy hat and leather cowboy boots with a nice pair of tight-fitting jeans. He was definitely drool-worthy as far as she was concerned. As soon as he was out of sight, she skipped back to her friends.

"You did not just skip over here," Rose teased her.

"So what if I did? I just had an interlude with Jasper Whitlock, and my excitement is totally skip-worthy. I am not ashamed."

"An interlude, eh? What kind of an interlude are we talking, dear?" Bella grilled her. "Did he ravish you in the back hall? Did he kiss you and whisper naughty, unspeakable things in your ear?"

Alice huffed and flicked Bella on her shoulder. "For your information, he smiled and nodded at me as he walked by. Keep your mind out of the gutter. Besides, if he did unspeakable things in my ear, you'd never know. A girl doesn't kiss and tell."

They all burst into laughter at Alice's last statement because they all knew she would be the last person to keep something like that from her friends. Alice spent the next fifteen minutes watching Jasper walk in and out of the club from the perfect vantage point. She was far enough away that she could admire him without being in the way or looking like a crazy fangirl. There was definitely a difference between respectfully admiring from afar and invading the man's personal space. She was not going to be that girl, now or ever.

By the time the show finally got underway, the area in front of the stage was packed, so she and her friends found a small pocket to stand by a large table. The music was phenomenal, and the show the band put on had so much energy that she could feel it vibrating inside of her—it was probably the bass, but it was an exciting feeling nonetheless. About midway through, she grabbed a vacant chair next to her so she could get a better view of the band. The crowd was so thick she couldn't see anything. The sound was amazing, but she wanted to actually see them play. Of course some jerk-off had to bump into her, and she toppled over into the girl standing behind her.

"God, I'm sorry. Are you okay?" Alice rushed to apologize.

"It's okay. I'm fine," she answered back with a genuine smile.

"Was I in your way standing up there?"

"No, you're fine. I'm kind of tall so I can see everything all right."

"I'm Alice by the way. The show is fabulous, isn't it?"

"It is. I'm Victoria. See the blond up there? The one without the hat?" She pointed toward the stage.

"Yeah, that's James, isn't it?"

The girl nodded and leaned in close. "That's my boyfriend. The rest of the people at this table are his family."

"You're kidding!" Alice said in surprise. "Wow. That's really great that you all came out to see him play. They sound fabulous tonight."

Victoria nodded, and they continued to watch the show. Throughout the evening, she and Victoria continued to converse. She was really nice and told her a few stories about how the guys in the band had all met. After the show, she led her over to a side booth they had set up to sell CDs. Just as Alice was paying for her CD, James came up behind Victoria and joined their conversation.

"Vic, we're about ready to head out. Are you coming with us or meeting us back at the hotel?"

"I rode here with your parents, so if there's room I'll ride with you."

"There's always room for you, babe." He kissed her on the cheek.

"James, this is Alice."

"Hi, Alice." He held out his hand to shake hers.

"It's nice to meet you, James." She gripped his hand in a firm shake. "That was a fabulous show. Thanks for playing."

"You're welcome. We love to play." He looked at her CD. "Would you like me to sign it?"

"That would be awesome, thanks! I didn't want to seem rude and ask." She handed him the disc. He quickly signed it and handed it back.

"Thanks again. I better get back to my friends." She motioned over to one of the groups of girls that were standing near the entrance to the patio. "And I'm sure you have to get going too. It was nice meeting you both!"

Victoria and James said goodbye and disappeared back into the restaurant as Alice made her way as coolly as possible back over to her friends. As much as she wanted to vent her excitement, she waited until she got over to the group and she was sure that Victoria and James were no longer in hearing distance, then she let out a short squeak and covered her mouth with her hand.

"Oh my God, you guys! They were so nice." She couldn't contain her smile or her enthusiasm.

"I'm glad you had a good time, Alice." Bella chuckled. "And she was really nice to us earlier in the crowd."

"So, are you ready to go?" Rose looked at her watch and then out to the street. She wasn't fooling anyone. It was probably time for them to head on back to the hostel to get ready for the _Harry Potter_ line, but they all knew she was scoping out the street in search of a certain handsome pedicab driver.

"I guess I'm ready if you guys are." Alice agreed. She'd already gotten what she'd came for tonight—a great show—even if it would have been nice to catch one more look of that sexy Texan on his way out to his car. Just as she was about to turn with the rest of the group, a small commotion erupted behind them at the entrance between the patio and the restaurant. Some girls had lined up at the door and were following the band members out of the club. James and the other members quickly surrounded Jasper as the girls erupted loudly, calling out his name.

Alice was disappointed by the display and shook her head in disgust at the girls as they rushed the group. James and the others were able to head them off at the entrance to the patio, but two girls made a break for it going in for a second rush as they opened the door to the band's vehicle.

Incensed, Alice grabbed them from behind and pulled them away. "Exercise a little self-control, will you?"

The two girls brushed her off and muttered obscenities at her before moving off. She looked at her friends who stared at her with surprise. "What? Can you believe them? Talk about rude!"

"Hey!" she heard someone call.

"Are you guys ready to go?" Alice looked at her friends.

"Hey!" She heard the voice again. "What's her name?"

"That's Alice," she heard Victoria say. Great, she thought, now she was in trouble for man-handling the fans.

"Alice?"

She turned around to look toward the group huddled around the open door of the car. Jasper was leaning out of the door, looking at her. She looked around and then pointed at her chest. "Me?"

"If you're Alice."

She looked at her friends in disbelief and then walked over toward the car.

"Thanks." He smiled at her crookedly.

"You're welcome," she said breathlessly. "It was nothing."

It was all she could do to stop herself from turning around and squealing at her friends. Jasper Whitlock was talking to her…little Mary Alice Brandon.

"Thanks the same." He smiled at her again. "Listen, James and Victoria said you're pretty cool. Would you like to come hang with us for the rest of the evening?"

"Um...I'd like to, but I've got to…" She was about to turn down Jasper Whitlock—what was she doing? "You know what? Yeah. I'd love to. Can you give me a minute? I just need to go tell my friends where I'm going."

"Sure." He sat back into the car, and the rest of the band filed into it. She rushed back over to her group, knowing they had witnessed the whole exchange.

"Do you mind if I go?" she asked hesitantly. She felt bad about ditching Bella and the girls, but when it came down to it, she would rather spend the evening with Jasper and the band than huddle under a blanket all night.

"Go. Get out of here." Bella waved her off. "I'd never forgive myself if I asked you to give this up for me. Just…have fun…and text us so we don't worry."

She clapped her hands together and backed toward the waiting vehicle. "Thanks you guys, I owe you!"

"Don't do anything I wouldn't do!" She heard Rose yell as she shut the door.

Alice settled in the seat and looked at Jasper expectantly. "Where to?"

He smiled at her mischievously. "Let's get it on…"

~CC~

Bella looked on as her friend pulled away in the band's SUV. There was no way she could have asked Alice to stay with the group. Besides, Alice was a big girl. She knew where they were going to be—there was no reason for her to not go and have the time of her life. They'd see her in a couple of hours.

The remaining members of their group made their way down Fifth Avenue toward their hostel. They needed to stop at their rooms for provisions before heading back down to the convention center to get in line for the night.

"Can you believe Alice just ditched us for a rock star?" Rose mused.

Bella couldn't help but laugh. "Yes. Yes, I can. Besides, it wasn't just any rock star—it was Jasper Whitlock. Alice has had a crush on him for ages."

"You know we're never going to hear the end of this, right?"

"I think in this one instance we can afford to let her live a little and then hear about it for years afterwards. I think she and Angela deserve some bragging rights after this trip." Bella smiled as she watched Ben and Angela moon over each other ahead of them on the sidewalk. "How about you?"

"How about me, what?" Rose tried to brush her off.

"You know." Bella motioned to Rose's hair. "Any regrets since we haven't seen your man this evening?"

Rose sighed and then laughed, twirling a piece of her newly vibrant hair around her fingertips. "It was kind of a stupid move, but no, no regrets. Like you said—live a little. I've got my own little story out of this trip even if it didn't earn bragging rights."

"Hey, Red, is that you?" Startled, both girls turned toward the familiar voice that called from across the street.

Bella snickered and elbowed Rose. "Speak of the pickle."

"Shut up, Bella." Rose returned the elbow and started to laugh. "Hi, Emmett."

Bella glanced down the street where Angela and Ben were walking ahead in their own little world and then quickly crossed the busy street with Rose—there was no need to interrupt them.

"Good evening, ladies." Emmett greeted them and then focused his attention on Rose. "Nice 'do, Rose. Did you do that for me?"

Rose blushed but looked him in the eye. "Why would I do a thing like that?"

Emmett full out laughed at her response, but there was no denying the sparkle in his eye at Rose's gesture. "Having a good time this evening?"

"We are, thank you," Bella said. "We're actually on our way back to the hostel to pick up our stuff so we can go camp out in line for the panels tomorrow morning."

"Pulling an all-nighter, eh?" He paused, but not long enough for either of them to respond to his remark. "Listen, I'm on break and I was hoping I could steal Rose for a few minutes…"

Bella looked at Rose to gauge her reaction. If the smile on her face was any indication, she wanted to stay with him, badly.

"I can bring her back to the hostel in time for you guys to get downtown-"

"I think that's a great idea, Emmett." Bella started to back away and waved to the couple on the sidewalk. "Rose, I'll see you in a few."

"Bella-" Rose began to shout after her.

"Have fun, Rose!" Bella waved over her shoulder and took off across the street. Rose deserved her own bragging rights.

She walked swiftly in order to catch up to Angela and Ben—which wasn't that hard since they were deep in conversation and walking at a snail's pace. She kept a careful distance—just enough to keep them in sight, but far enough away to afford them some semblance of privacy on the busy sidewalk. Looking at the couple ahead of her, she couldn't help but feel disappointed that out of all of her friends, she was the only one to not find some sort of adventure during their trip.


	5. Saturday

**This is the end - I hope you enjoyed the ride!**

**~Saturday~**

This is what she had been waiting for all night under the stars with two of her best friends. When they had gotten back to the hostel, Angela had said goodbye to Ben while Bella gathered their gear for the night—a couple of pillows and two blankets. The four of them had decided to pack minimally and were going to share the bedding. By the time she had made it down to the entryway, Emmett was dropping Rose off—with a kiss—and picked up Ben to chauffer him off to his hotel. There had been no sign of Alice—which wasn't surprising. Bella had known that Alice probably wasn't going to meet up with them until much later. In reality, much later wasn't until the next morning. They were barely able to sneak her into line with them during one of the bathroom breaks.

As predicted, she regaled them with amazing stories of her night with Jasper. She had literally partied like a rock star. Once again, Bella couldn't help but feel slightly jealous of her friends. As much fun as she was having with the girls, she had nothing to brag about except the free upgrade to Economy-plus Class on their flight out to San Diego—free meaning the extra sixty dollars it cost her because that was the only seat they had left when she checked in for their flight.

Bella exited the bathroom just in time to see that not only had her friends moved from their seats, but the lights were being lowered for the _Harry Potter_ trailer. There was no time to look for the rest of her group, so she stayed put. The hall went black and her body sang in anticipation of the new footage that was supposed to be revealed in a ComicCon exclusive.

One word—disappointing. As exciting as it was to see all of the new _Harry Potter_ trailers she'd already seen on YouTube montaged on the big screen, standing in line since two a.m. had not been worth the paltry ten seconds of never-before-seen footage in the three-minute trailer and a mother fucking t-shirt. Last night, rumor at the House of Blues had been that the super top secret surprise panel was going to feature major cast members. Bella harbored a secret weakness for gingers, so if the Weasley twins or Ron made an appearance, it would all be worth it.

Just as the trailer ended, her phone vibrated. She snuck it out of her pocket, hoping a text was finally coming through to tell her where Alice and the others had moved.

"You need to come with me," someone said, and tapped her on her shoulder. She looked up to see a security guard eyeing her with a look of disapproval. Bella sighed and followed him toward a security door. She hadn't done anything wrong, but she knew better than to try to argue with him out in the open.

On the other side of the door was a wide hallway with a dozen or so people lined up against the wall—all with their cameras and phones in hand. Her stomach jolted at the thought of what kind of trouble she could be in, filling her mouth with a small erp that tasted suspiciously like vomit flavored Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans.

"Up against the wall." The guard pointed Bella to the end of the line and then exited through the same door they had just entered.

She followed his direction and stood with the others who were murmuring about the situation in which they found themselves. She stood quietly and waited, preferring to keep to herself—the more she cooperated, the sooner she would be back out in the conference room.

A minute later, a door at the end of the hallway opened up and another security guard stepped through. She had to do a double take—almost dropping her camera when she whipped her head around to get a better look at the man walking toward them. He was wearing one of the more official looking suits instead of the yellow polos worn by most of security, but that's not what caught her attention.

She stood frozen and swore on her signed copy of _Goblet of Fire_ that Cedric Diggory had come to life and was walking straight toward her…er…them.

It _was_ him…only ten years older—if he hadn't been murdered by order of the Dark Lord. He had the same hair, pale skin, and slight flush to his cheeks. He stood tall, wearing his suit with an air of authority and confidence that his almost boyish looks belied. She felt her heart rate and breathing speed up, while her stomach erupted in a flurry of butterflies. Her emotions were escalating to a point where she became concerned she might actually lose control, crossing the line into a fangirl fit. It was all she could do to contain herself—after all, she had to remember, he was just a security guard and not her most secret fantasy come to life.

In an effort for self-preservation she looked down, refusing to ogle him, and chanted "it's not Cedric" silently as she stared at her hands. With her attention focused downward, she glanced at her attire, remembering that she had dressed specifically for the _Harry Potter_ panel and was decked out in all her fan finest. It may not be as impressive as some of the die-hards, but it was enough to show her loyalty. Her Hufflepuff scarf was wound stylishly around her neck, with the ends hanging down the front of her custom made "Accio Cedric" t-shirt. It screamed geek. Of course she was at ComicCon which was declaration enough by itself of her allegiance to geekdom, so it probably didn't matter what she was wearing—unless she was parading around in lingerie like those _Sucker Punch_ girls. He'd definitely notice her then…

Why did she care anyway? He probably didn't, and wouldn't care—after all, he's a security guard at ComicCon, he'd probably seen it all. He definitely had if he'd seen the _Sucker Punch_ girls.

So he resembled her favorite _Harry Potter_ crush…big deal. Of course, if she was being honest with herself, she'd admit that he could pass for Cedric's twin. It didn't matter. As he came to a stop in front of the group, she reminded herself to get under control, let the hot man check her camera and phone, then go find her friends.

Bella waited patiently as he made his way through the line; some were dismissed and others were ordered to immediately delete any and all photos on their cameras and phones while Mr. Security Guard watched. The closer he got, the more flustered she became. Just his proximity was unnerving—his raw sex appeal a force of its own, setting off her nerves flip-flopping around in her belly like a bunch of chocolate frogs trying to hop away.

He dismissed the person next to her and her nervousness increased exponentially; they were alone in the hallway. She was alone with _Cedric the Security Guard_. She kept her head down and chewed on the inside of her bottom lip to contain the small squeal that was desperately trying to escape. She could get through this if she just concentrated on her feet…which were in front of his feet…his _big_ feet…his _very_ _long_ feet…

"Miss?" he quietly asked. "Camera, please."

She continued to look down. His rich voice, devastating to the small amount of composure she clung to, sounded exactly like Cedric's…only without the accent, or at least what she imagined Cedric would sound like if he hadn't had that delicious accent.

"Miss?" he asked again; his hand stretched out in front of him and entered her field of vision. She didn't hear him address her again as her entire focus was on the sight of his hands, so like Cedric's, with long elegant fingers. She wondered what they would look like curled around his _wand_…

"Miss?" His voice, more firm this time, finally broke through her day dream.

"Yeah, sorry," she managed to rasp out, and handed him her camera.

Since she knew he was focused on scrolling through her photos, Bella dared to sneak a peek at him. His face was impassive for the most part, but as he continued to scroll through the photos, the corner of his mouth slowly turned upwards into a small secretive smile.

"So Hufflepuff's your house of choice?" She was so engrossed in the upturned corner of his lips that she jumped when he spoke. Though she was startled, she was able to eke out a simple affirmative—the only thing she was capable of saying at the time. His grin widened, as if he knew the effect he was having on her. "I know it's cliché, but I've always been a fan of Gryffindor myself."

He looked up and met her stare, returning her camera and motioning for her to pass him her phone. Their fingers brushed against each other, sending a jolt of desire right through to her naughty bits, which immediately twitched in response. Her eyes widened at his in surprise. He'd made her kitty twitch…with a simple brush of his fingers—was that even possible? He held her eyes for a few more seconds before shifting down to stare at the "Accio Cedric" that spread across her breasts, which to her embarrassment were perfectly framed by her scarf, then looked back down to inspect her phone. The smile never left his face.

"I've always been partial to Hermione myself. All that long brown hair…" He paused and kept scrolling through her phone for another minute, then looked back up at her abruptly. "Come with me."

"What?" Bella looked at him in surprise. "Why?"

"This way, please." He held his hand out in front of him, indicating that she should precede him.

"I don't understand." Bella started walking, but she kept looking back at him as she spoke. "I didn't take any photos. There's nothing on there. I'm _sure_ I didn't do anything wrong!"

"In here." He indicated a doorway off to their left and pulled out a set of keys.

Thoughts raced through her head. She hadn't done anything wrong; she knew it. This had to be some kind of misunderstanding. Mentally she flashed through all the photos she had on her phone. There was nothing there that could incriminate her in any way…except a few racy snapshots from last night when she and the girls had been messing around in the line for the panel…but nothing illegally obtained.

She stopped as soon as she went through the door he indicated. The lights were off and she only caught a glimpse of what was in front of her before the door closed, leaving them in complete darkness. She wasn't sure what to do, so she waited. She knew he was right behind her. She could feel the heat of his body. He was so close she wouldn't even be able to take a step backward; all she would have to do was lean into him.

"Do you know why I brought you in here?" She felt her hair slide through his fingers as he moved it out of the way to whisper in her ear.

"No," she whispered back and shook her head.

"Let me show you." He pulled her hair away from the right side of her face then pressed his body gently against her back as he brought his left arm around her, loosely anchoring her to him. She saw a small flash of light and then recognized her phone as he held it up in front of them. The screen displayed one of the pictures she and her friends had taken last night.

"You're quite good with a wand…" Bella stared at the picture of her licking her replica of Hermione's wand that she had brought with her on their trip.

And the chocolate frogs were back…only this time her heart was thumping so hard she thought they were trying to jump out of her chest. His body was so warm up against hers, his presence and words muddling her brain. She didn't know what to say, and even if she did, she didn't think she could speak.

Bella felt his head lean forward and rest against her own. She could feel his chest rising and falling with every deep breath that he took—the hand that held her phone disappeared as he took the next.

"I'm sorry." He paused, his chest shuddering against her back. "I shouldn't have brought you in here, but…" His warm breath skimming across her neck made it hard for her to concentrate, but she held still, waiting for him to continue. "When I saw you standing there…it was like you were my fantasy come to life. I know I might look kind of…scary…" He paused again, fortifying his resolve with another deep breath before he continued. "It's part of the job. I'm just as much of a geek as anyone else attending the conference. I actually volunteered for this job hoping to catch a glimpse of Emma Watson…but then I saw you.

"I saw you standing there against the wall in your house colors…your Hufflepuff scarf framing your tits…" He moaned and pressed closer. "…your beautiful brown hair and then when I saw that picture with the wand…" He tightened his arm around her waist, and she could feel every inch of his hard planes pressed against her. His lips were so close she could feel the movement of them against her ear as he continued to whisper. "It was all I could do to keep my hands to myself. Do you have any idea how hard you've made me?"

The breath she hadn't known she'd been holding whooshed out.

"Are you afraid?" he whispered.

"No," she whispered back.

"Will you be my Hermione?"

All she could do was nod her head in affirmation. Bella couldn't believe this was happening to her—right here, right now. Things like this didn't ever come her way, and there was no way she was going to refuse.

He buried his face where her shoulder met her neck and sighed in relief. When he lifted his head back up, she could feel his lips brushing against the outside of her ear.

"Say it. Out loud."

"Yes."

That one small word, uttered in a breathy moan, was the point of no return. There was no going back, and she didn't want to—ever. No regrets.

As soon as the word passed her lips, he turned her around, grasping her cheeks in his palms and attacked her lips with the same passion she was feeling. It was a perfect kiss—lips parted, perfectly moist, and enough force to convey his desire without banging their teeth together. His lips were soft and lush. They molded perfectly to hers in a way that let her gently suck on his full, bottom lip.

While they kissed, he caressed her cheekbones with his thumbs. The small movement was reassuring. She felt safe and it made the moment more intimate than an average random hook-up. The few one-night stands that she'd had in her life were more about getting off than making any kind of personal connection. They were impersonal business transactions—I'll give you yours if you give me mine—but this felt different. This wasn't just about personal satisfaction. It was fantasy—which only served to heighten her desire.

As they continued to kiss, she stepped in closer and brought her hands up to skim along the edge of his jaw, her fingers sliding into his hair at the nape of his neck. His hair was soft and silky against her skin, and she suddenly had an overwhelming urge to sniff it. So as much as she wanted to keep her mouth on his, she tore her lips away and kissed along the edge of his jaw and up to his ear so she could bury her nose in his hair as she nibbled at his lobe and the sensitive spot on his neck just below.

And God, he smelled good. Fresh and clean, like soap and man.

He finally let go of her face, trailing his hands down to the ends of her scarf, letting his knuckles graze across her tits as they moved down. When his hands reached the ends, he stepped away. She immediately craved the feel of her lips on his skin and whimpered at the loss of contact as he led her forward using her scarf to pull her along.

Her eyes had finally adjusted to the darkness, and she could make out dim shapes that appeared to be stacks of chairs and tables pushed up against the walls. He stopped near a table and used her scarf to pull her back toward him until her lips were once again pressed against his.

This time as he assaulted her mouth, he was less gentle, nipping and biting at her lips while they kissed, causing breathy moans to escape with each slant of his mouth. He released his grip on her scarf, letting his hands explore her body. He started with her waist, gripping it on both sides and pulling her flush against him. His chest was warm and firm against her breasts. She liked the feel of him against her body. His hands moved up, stroking her sides up, down, and then back up again until he reached the sides of her breasts. He paused for a moment in his exploration then timidly caressed her breasts with his thumbs before confidently palming them.

Each pass of his hands on her body elicited small moans of pleasure. She hadn't felt this good in longer than she cared to remember, and she was going to make the most of it. Becoming bolder, she passed her hands over his body in much the same way he had explored hers. His body was firm, the muscles taut as they flexed with the building sexual tension.

Soon touching wasn't enough. He released her breasts, rubbing his thumbs over her nipples one more time before carefully unwinding her scarf from around her neck. As soon as it was discarded, he trailed his hands back down to the hem of her shirt, only breaking their kiss as he lifted it up and over her head. As soon as he had started divesting her of her clothing, she reciprocated, shoving his jacket off his shoulders then fumbled with the buttons on his shirt.

Piece by piece their clothing fell to the floor. Skin met hot skin, tongue met tongue, and body rubbed against body. As soon as the last piece fell, his hands grasped her ass and lifted her up onto the table behind them. His head dipped as he kissed along her exposed chest while his hands crept forward along her hips. The thumbs that had once shyly caressed her nipples now inched forward to the creases of her thighs, closing in on her most intimate place.

There were no thoughts in her head, just pure lust guiding her every action and response. Her hands ran over the soft skin of his shoulders, moving as if of their own free will, seeking out whatever his body had to offer. And he had a lot to offer. She may not have been able to see him in the dark, but her hands could feel his lightly defined muscles, the hard planes of his chest and his firm backside. He was exquisite.

The tips of his thumbs finally reached her kitty just as his lips closed over one of her nipples. The simultaneous sensations triggered another whimper and a series of pants to burst forth from between her lips. She moved her hands back up to his head to anchor him to her breasts. Normally she didn't care much for breast play, but whatever he was doing with his tongue and his teeth was surely going to drive her insane.

Her legs parted in encouragement as his thumbs continued their gentle exploration. They stroked over top of her slit and down toward her center, teasing her softly and making her burn for more. On the way back up, the tip of one thumb slipped in between, gathering her moisture and slid back up where he slowly massaged her clit with the slightest of pressures.

He moaned against her breasts as he continued to manipulate her body with his hands and tongue. Words that sounded like "hot" and "wet" mingled with incoherent babble as he moved from one breast to the other, turning her on even more.

She pulled his lips back to hers just as he thrust a finger inside of her and moaned into his mouth in response to the new pleasure he was assaulting her with. She felt her kitty twitch again at the new sensations. Just like her fantasy, he had long elegant fingers that were put to good use, stroking in and out of her in a steady rhythm. With each twitch of her inner muscles, she knew it wouldn't take much to find her release. As much as she loved what he was currently doing to her body, she not only wanted to prolong the pleasure, but she wanted him inside her when she came. So, she scraped her nails lightly down his torso, following the light dusting of hair that led south until she could wrap her fingers around his cock—a sure way to grab his attention.

"Protection?" She slowly pumped his hard length, exploring the silky skin, reveling in the warmth—if she couldn't see it, she at least wanted to memorize every inch with her touch.

"Got it covered," he moaned against her lips.

As she sped up, he slowed his movements between her legs and moved his hands to her breasts, kneading the flesh and flicking her nipples, mimicking the movement of her hand on his cock. As her palm flicked over his tip, he shivered and released her breasts, moving his hands up to grasp her face.

He sucked her bottom lip roughly then thrust his tongue against hers; his kiss was rough and hungry as he devoured her mouth. His hands moved over her until one was tangled in her hair at the nape of her neck and the other cradled her lower back. He gently lowered her down to the table, kissing along her jaw and her chest, her kitty nestling against his hardness. She could hear the crinkling of plastic as he rubbed himself against her, felt the absence of his heat for a mere moment then his hands gripped her thighs, sliding her closer to the edge of the table. He quickly repositioned her legs—wrapping one around his waist and draping one over his shoulder.

The head of his cock rubbed against her, sliding up to circle her clit, down to probe gently at her entrance, and then up again in pleasant torture. She was tired of waiting, so on the next pass down, she thrust her hips, taking him just inside. They moaned together in satisfaction, and he continued to push forward until he was fully embedded.

His pace started out slow but steadily built to increase the friction between their bodies. He held her secure with the hand that still held her hip and grazed the other up past her opposite thigh to the ankle that rested on his shoulder. She felt his lips kiss and nip at her calf as he held her leg in place.

She had been right to hold off her release. The pressure of her orgasm built with each thrust of his hips. She could feel the heat of it building as she met him thrust for thrust. "Uh…Cedric!" she screamed as the fire spread from her center outward until it washed over her entire body.

"Hermione—" he yelled as her muscles twitched and gripped him inside, pushing him over the edge as well.

He kissed his way down her leg as he lowered it off his shoulder and moved it to join the other already at his waist. His hands made a circuit around her body, as if memorizing it, then rubbed her thighs and lowered his lips to hers for another kiss before disengaging their bodies.

She felt oddly empty, wishing they had more time, but knowing they would have to part soon. They quietly gathered their clothes. She had to get back to the hall; the girls were probably worried about her since she hadn't returned.

She dressed, not the slightest worried about modesty since it was dark. Besides, she wanted to catch whatever glimpses she could of him in the time they had left, even if it was just shadows for her memories. When she was done, she had gathered everything except for her phone. She couldn't seem to find any trace of it in the dark.

"Umm…I can't find my phone. Have you seen it?" she asked nervously.

"I, ah…I think I dropped it over here. Just a second, let me get it."

A few short moments later, he was standing in front of her. He reached out for her, rubbing his thumb across her palm before placing her phone in her hand. "Here."

"Thanks." She didn't know what else to say. She didn't feel awkward at all, not even about calling him Cedric as she came. She just didn't know how to say goodbye to someone she would probably never see again, though she wanted to…

Fortunately he knew what to say, or how to say it even though he didn't use words. Before he let go of her hand, he pulled her into one more embrace. Cupping her cheek with one hand, he pressed his lips to hers and languidly stroked his tongue against hers in a final kiss. With a whispered "thank you" against her lips, he pulled away and led her out of the room.

Even though the corridor was clear, they parted once they entered the hallway, quietly walking to the doors leading back to the conference room. He smiled at her and reached out to give her hand a squeeze then strode down the hall and back through the door she had first seen him enter. Still dazed and slightly weak in the knees from their encounter, Bella re-entered the hall and took out her phone to try to text Alice again. The small amount of charge she'd gotten was almost gone again, but there was just enough to catch an incoming text:

_Fr: Accio Edward_

_Just in case… Use your…wand. I'll answer._

_July 24, 12:04 pm_

Bella smiled and headed to the bathroom to try to get more charge to text him back.

Best fucking vacation…_ever_. They w_e're so coming back next year_.


End file.
